BJP, allies to contest all 3 RS seats in Assam: Himanta

The ruling BJP and its allies will contest all three Rajya Sabha seats that will fall vacant in Assam in April this year, Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma said. Sarma claimed the victory of their candidates in two seats is confirmed, while the third one may also end up in their kitty.

The seats held by two BJP MPs, Bhubaneswar Kalita and Rameswar Teli, and one Independent MP, Ajit Bhuyan, will fall vacant in April. “The BJP, AGP and our united front will nominate candidates in all three seats,” Sarma said at a press conference here on Friday evening. “We will win in two for sure. The third one, we may win or lose,” he added. Sarma said the BJP and its allies had not fielded a candidate against Bhuyan last time as they thought that he was “neutral and will work for good”.

“But what he did with his Rajya Sabha MP funds we all know,” the CM said, referring to corruption charges against the utilisation of Bhuyan’s funds.

The BJP has 64 members, while its allies AGP, UPPL and BPF have nine, seven and three MLAs each in the current Assembly. In the opposition camp, the Congress has 26, AIUDF has 15 members, and CPI(M) has one MLA. There is one independent legislator in the House.